Crown Prince Salman chairs Cabinet session (12/3/12)

December 3, 2012

Crown Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz began the Cabinet session at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh this afternoon by thanking God for the success of the surgery recently undergone by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz. The ministers prayed for the King’s speedy recovery and expressed gratitude to all the foreign leaders and citizens who have sent their good wishes.

Then, the Cabinet discussed a number of topics regarding the Kingdom’s relations with foreign countries and reviewed the latest regional and international developments. It commended the final statement of the 11th Session of the Joint Defense Council of the Ministers of Defense of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), during which military actions and joint defense were discussed, as well as the statement of the 5th session of the Turkish-Arab Cooperation Forum, which stressed the importance of Arab-Turkish strategic cooperation.

The ministers also expressed pride over the inauguration of the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Center for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue in Vienna. They thanked Austria for hosting the Center, along with Spain and all the other contributors who helped establish the King’s vision. Finally, the ministers welcomed the decision of the United Nations General Assembly to adopt a resolution granting Palestine observer state status. They congratulated the Palestinian people on this historic achievement, which embodies the international community’s awareness of the justness of the Palestinian cause, and reaffirmed the Kingdom’s full support for the creation of an independent state.

Next, the Cabinet discussed a number of scientific, cultural and religious activities that were held in the Kingdom over the past few days, including the 34th King Abdulaziz International Competition for the Holy Quran Memorization, Intonation and Interpretation and the 11th General Conference of the Organization of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO).

Addressing the remaining items on its weekly agenda, the Cabinet approved a number of measures regarding the organization of the school health sector and authorized the Minister of Agriculture to take the necessary measures for the approval of the draft Statute of the International Council of Dates.

The Cabinet approved the appointments of Awadallah Al-Rehaily as Assistant Vice President of the General Auditing Bureau for Branches Affairs (15th rank); Sultan Al-Sultan as Financial Advisor at the General Auditing Bureau (15th rank); Redha Al-Zughaibi as Minister Plenipotentiary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and Riyad Al-Khunaini as Minister Plenipotentiary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.